Teaching grammar: a taskbased approach

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Teaching grammar a task-based approach

• David Nunan

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Overview

• With the development of communicative approaches
  to language teaching, the place of grammar has
  been uncertain. There are those who argue that
  there is no place for a formal focus on grammar
  in the communicative classroom of today. I do not
  share this view. In this presentation, I will
  argue that grammar has a central and fundamental
  place in the curriculum. However, this does not
  mean I am arguing for a return to "traditional"
  ways of teaching grammar. In the first plart of
  the presentation, I will explain what it means to
  look at grammar as a tool for communication
  rather than as a body of content to be memorized.
  I will then give practical examples of how
  teachers can implement these ideas in their
  classrooms.

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Questions addressed in the presentation

• What is grammar?
• Whats the difference between a prescriptive
  and a descriptive grammar?
• In what ways are grammar, vocabulary and
  pronunciation interrelated?
• What is a task?

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Warm up task Dictogloss

• My name is David Nunan. I am a teacher. I live in
  Hong Kong, but I travel a lot. This is my second
  visit to Cambodia. I love the weather, the food
  and the people in here in Cambodia. I look
  forward to meeting new frends during the
  conference.

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Traditional definition 1

• Grammar may be roughly defined as the way
  language manipulates and combines words (or bits
  of words) in order to form longer units of
  meaning (Ur 1988, p.4).

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Traditional definition 2

• Grammar is a description of the structure of a
  language and the way in which units such as words
  and phrases are combined to produce sentences in
  the language (Richards, Platt and Weber, 2003).

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Traditional definition 3

• Grammar is the way in which words change
  themselves and group together to make sentences.
  The grammar of a language is what happens to
  words when they become plural or negative, or
  what order is used when we make questions or join
  two clauses to make one sentence (Harmer, 1987).

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Grammar and pronunciation

• Shes Italian, isnt she?
• (rising intonation)
• I believe that shes Italian, but Im really
  not certain.
• (falling intonation)
• Im pretty sure shes Italian, but Id like
  your confirmation on that.
• Shes Italian, is she? (rising intonation)
• I thought she was Spanish, but Ive just
  received information that leads me to revise my
  belief.

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Grammar and pronunciation

• A woman without her man is nothing.
• A woman without her man (pause) is nothing.
• A woman (pause) without her man is nothing.

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Grammar and vocabulary

• Mary J. Blige has been dubbed the Queen of
  hip-hop Soul, but shes really an old-fashioned
  blues singer wrapped in hip-hop beats and soul
  grooves. (Rolling Stone September 18, 2003, page
  70).
• Mary J. Blige the Queen of hip-hop she an
  old-fashioned blues singer

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A communicative definition

• Grammar is a resource that enables us
• to get things done
• to make choices
• to express ourselves as individuals
• to articulate our feelings and attitudes

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From principles to pedagogy

• Teach grammar as an extremely flexible resource
  for making meaning.
• As far as possible, integrate the teaching of
  grammar with the teaching of pronunciation and
  vocabulary.
• Help learners see relationships between form and
  meaning.
• Teach students how to use grammar to make
  appropriate choices and express their own
  personal meanings.

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Repetition The traditional approach

• T She can speak Spanish (French).
• Ss She can speak French.
• T They
• Ss They can speak French.
• T German - cant
• Ss They cant speak German
• (etc.)

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A task-based approach

• Tasks
• have a primary focus on meaning
• learners are not given other peoples meanings to
  regurgitate
• have an outcome other than the manipulation and
  practice of language forms
• generate language use that has some resemblance
  to real-world language

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True / false
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True / false

• GFI 2e Level 2 Page 31 Task 4

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Figure it out

• GFI 2e Level 2 page 3 Tasks 3a b

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Figure it out

• GFI 2e Level 2 page 3 Tasks 3a b

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Detective

• Procedure An object to be stolen is decided
  onsay a coin or a ring. Once student (the
  detective) is sent out of the room. One of the
  remaining students is given the object he or she
  is the thief.
• The detective returns and tries to find out who
  the thief is by asking participants Do you have
  it/the ring?

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Detective

• Each participantincluding the actual
  thiefdenies guilt, and accuses someone else.
  No, I dont have it. A has it! Whereupon, the
  detective turns to A with the same questionand
  so on, until everyone has been asked and has
  denied responsibility. The detective then has to
  decide in three guesses who is lyingwho looks
  guilty. The process is then repeated with another
  detective and another thief. (Ur 1988)

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Tic-tac-toe

• GFI 2e Leve l2 page 6 Task 4 Go For It

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Information gap
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Information gap (cont.)
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Surveys
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Dictogloss

• Preparation, when the learner finds out about the
  topic of the text and is prepared for some of the
  vocabulary.
• Dictation, when the learner hears the text and
  takes fragmentary notes. (Wajnryb recommends that
  the text be read twice, at normal speed. The
  first time through, learners simply listen to get
  a general sense of what the text is about. The
  second time, they write down key words.)
• Reconstruction, in which learners work in small
  groups, pool their notes, and reconstruct the
  text.
• Analysis and correction, when learners analyze
  and correct their texts. Wajnryb (1990)

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Role play
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References

• Nunan, D. 1999. Second Language Teaching and
  Learning. Boston Thomson/Heinle.
• Nunan, D. 2004. Practical English Language
  Teaching Grammar. New York McGraw Hill.
• Pennington, M. 1995. New Ways in Teaching
  Grammar. Alexandria VA TESOL.
• Thornbury, S. 1999. How to Teach Grammar. London
  Longman.
• Ur, P. 1988. Grammar Practice Activities.
  Cambridge Cambridge University Press.

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Web sites

• http//ec.hku.hk/vec/grammar/default.htm
• http//www.ohiou.edu/esl/teacher/grammar.html
• http//owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/esl/
• http//esl.about.com/cs/grammar
• http//expressions.heinle.com
• http//www.eslcafe.com
• http//goforit.heinle.com